Officials say the quota was set with the intention of continuing to reduce the state’s wolf population toward management goals. The state’s current late-winter 2013 minimum count is 809 to 834 wolves. This count is similar to the late winter population count prior to the 2012 wolf hunt. That estimate is intentionally when the population is at its annual low point.

Analysis of available data, published scientific literature, and population modeling tools suggests the quota, if reached, will result in a 10 to 20 percent reduction in the 2014 late winter count. That data factors in new wolf pups born, and unfilled tags claimed by the Lake Superior Chippewa Tribe.

The quota will be distributed across six hunting and trapping zones, identical to last year, and the department will maintain the 10-to-1 license-to-quota ratio. The 2013 season starts October 15.